The present invention concerns a method of filling an automatically discharging centrifuge drum with a mixture of liquids that is to be separated. The mixture is introduced through an intake pipe and a header. The header's intake section communicates with a stack of disks through openings in the header's base. The base is provided with radial supply channels. Channels at the center of the stack divert the separated lighter liquid phase into a diversion chamber, and channels at the periphery of the stack divert the separated heavier liquid phase into another diversion chamber.
The invention also concerns an automatically discharging centrifuge drum of the type having an intake pipe and a header with an intake section that communicates through openings in the base of the header with a stack of disks, wherein the base is provided with radial supply channels, wherein channels at the center of the stack can divert the lighter liquid phase of the separated mixture into a diversion chamber, and wherein other channels at the periphery of the stack divert the heavier liquid phase into another diversion chamber.
A centrifuge drum for separating mixtures of liquids is known from German 2 313 669 C3 for example. The supply channels in this drum are created by ribs below the base of the header that extend into the center of the intake section. The ribs initiate spontaneous acceleration on the part of the incoming mixture to the same angular speed as that of the drum. The unavoidable impact can be detrimental to sensitive mixtures.
Such mixtures can be particularly stressed when the ribs or intake openings are not covered by the liquid. Once the ribs are below the level of the liquid, entrainment will be as extensively careful as possible due to liquid friction. Such a drum can of course be designed to ensure that the ribs or openings will be covered by liquid during actual operation, but they will still be uncovered while the drum is being charged at the commencement of the separation process or once the drum has discharged, when they will have the aforesaid deleterious effect on the product.
This situation is particularly unacceptable with very precious and impact-sensitive products, from the separation of blood plasma for example. In this case the discharged plasma will remain tinged with red for 30 seconds, a sign of undesirable hemolysis due to impact on the cells.